week on "techknow." >> follow our expert contributors on twitter, facebook, google plus and more. >> you're watching al jazeera america. i'm jonathan betz. tourists targeted a disturbing turn in egypt's violence, a bus carrying tourists is bombed. pressure grows on the venezuelan president to step down. first time in half a century. cuban students are in american schools. they share their eye-opening experiences.

tonight we're hearing from survivors who escapes in order korea and their stories are shocking the world. extermination camps killing entire families, prisoners digging their own graves and forced abortions. a new united nations reports to be released in hours. it blames the kim family for years of crimes against humanity. >> it is a place that would make your hair stand on end. >> kim young sun, known as yodok. >> from sunrise to sunset you work. there are no set working hours. you get up at 3:30 a.m. and work until dark. >> she managed to escape the country giving evidence to the

united nations and the south korean capitol seoul, for their year long investigation of the secretive regime. it is evidence of torture, widespread abductions and murder. also spoke of extermination campletion. >> i -- camps. >> i have escorted a family to camp 16. and then to camp 11. that is called ex terminating three generations of a family. prisoner comes into an office and is told to take a seat. behind the screen there are two people holding on to what looks to me like a rubber rope. it gets wrapped around their neck. >> north korea has a git by association -- guilt by association law, meaning whole families can be locked up often

with no knowledge of their crime. >> i may be the culprit but the other six members of my family were forced to go with me without knowing the charge. >> many spoke of the starvation of their fellow prisoners. >> translator: people got so hungry they would eat anything from dog food and cattle feed and beans left on the ground. i heard some people ate beans and kernels stuck in animal dung. >> north korea denies crimes against humanity are taking place. liz dunkley, al jazeera. >> amnesty international is praising this new report. >> this may be the best chance we've had in a long time to raise the profile, to get more

attention to the grave situation in north crea and to really -- korea and to put pressure on the government by the u.n. and to make change on the ground. nobody is as naive to think that this may mean change overnight but it has to be this increased pressure, this ongoing look at shining a light on what's going on in north korea that will eventually have an impact. we can't rely on any one means to achieve this change. we've got to work on multiple levels and the u.n. is one of the tools we can use. >> amnesty international has been monitor being north korean conduct for years. the country flatly denies all the charges. an act of tourism. a bus packed with tourists on the sinai peninsula is bombed. the injured are rushed to hospitals, it happened in south

sinai as the bus approached the egyptian border. al jazeera's nick shifrin has the latest. >> it leaves egyptian officials fearing there could be more attacks on tourists visiting egypt. security video you can see how big the plume of smoke was, nearly every single person on the bus was injured by that blast. now, i spoke to the head of craft tours, that's a tour company in cairo that facilitated that tour. he believes the bomb was placed underneat the driver's seat. a tourist destination in south sinai. the bus made no stops between

the monda monday monda monday m. security services until today. we haven't seen tourists target ed in the sinai in some eight years which means, shift in strategy for these armed groups and they feared those groups could begin to attack softer targets. out offed egyptian -- ousted egyptian president mohamed morsi, defense team left in protest, again delayed. morsi faces charges of

espionage. it's the 50th day of imprisonment, our colleagues mohamed fahmy, peter greste and baher mohamed. the united nations have called for their release. they were rescued from a mine, only to end up in jail. crews pulled from an abandoned gold mine, in south africa. fear for help, they will be arrested. aru matassa has more. >> desperately trying to save lives. these workers on a dangerous mission, to rescue illegal miners,. >> at this stage rescue operations have been -- have ceased on the site of the incident or the site has been landed over through to the mining securities, 11 miners have been removed from the site,

they have been checked by the medical operations, from the base and in these cases what we worry about is severe dehydration. they have been cleared and vital signs have been indicated stable and into police custody. >> it is sed some more people could have been trapped in the mine. some illegal miners may not come out fearing arrest. miners 30 kilometers eves of jo johannesber-g. this is only way they can make a living. >> when we try to call there was no more answers and then we

suppose that those were the 11 people that we had there. >> mining is one of africa's biggest industries and there are certainly abandoned mines in the areas surrounding joe han johan. mining for some is the only way they can put food on the table. tried to calm israeli fears. the right of return issue has been a sticking point in negotiations. that's the demand by millions of displaced palestinians to return to lost properties in the jewish state. >> let's put the issue of refugees on the table because it is an issue that mutt be resolved to put an end to the -- that must be resolved to put an end to the conflict.

>> comments implies he might be under a palestinian state under a passions government. >> italy's president is expected to hold another meeting with a likely president, matteo renzi, promising radical reforms to one of europe's most troubled economies. ukraine's president has pulled out of kiev's city hall. this comes after the government said it would drop charges against arrested activists. >> starting from tomorrow, law enforcement and judicial institution he will carry out procedures to drop case he of violence confrontation. >> protesters have been occupying the square in kiev for

two months now. more demonstrations on tuesday. a warrant has been issued for the arrest of leopoldo lopez. people there have been rallying for a fifth day, condemning high inflation, food shortages and rising crime. lopez says he has doning nothing wrong. >> during the last few days they have said they want to arrest me. i will be there showing my face. i have nothing to fear. i have committed no crime. i have been a venezuelan committed to our country our constitution and our future. if there is a legal decision to jail me i will accept that decision and our infamous decision by the state. >> racially levin has more from caracas.

>> are demonstrators took to the streets for the fifth day in a row. no incidence of voyages, rather, they came together to show their support and strength in numbers. this came traiment when another -- at the same time when another opposition leader made a first appearance this week from his own studios and he really called on peace and said that the demonstrators needed to show restraint. he also called for another national march to show venezuelans dissatisfaction, their age are at rising crime and -- anger at rising crime and rising inflation. meanwhile, the president has kept up his pressure on the opposition movement. in the morning security forces raided the house over opposition leader leopoldo lopez, and

violence that occurred at student demonstration, that mr. lopez helped to organize. while tensions continue to be high, so far it's been rather peaceful. moving to president obama, issued a warning to uganda today. in a statement mr. obama said i am so deeply disappointed that uganda would shortly enact legislation that will cril criticallize homosexuality. uganda gets more money from the united states than any other nation, over $400 million a

year. hydrouponic, the expensive approach to help feed the hungry. plus a heartbreaking consequence in colorado, rebecca. >> we are in the midst of a historic avalanche cycle. we have an avalanche advisory and warnings in other states. i'll show you how much snow is moving in next.

the most important money stories of the day might effect

your savings, your job or your retirement. whether it's bail-outs or bond rates this stuff gets complicated. but don't worry. i'm here to take the fear out of finance. every night on my show i break down confusing financial speak and make it real. >> secretary of state john kerry says the world must work together to tackle climate change. he dismissed those who refused to recognize it while addressing a group of students in indonesia today. >> when i think about global threats, think about this. terrorism, epidemics, poverty, the proliferation of weapons of

mass destruction. all challenges that know no borders, the reality is, that climate change ranks up there with every single one of them. >> his comments followed a joint deal with u.s. and china to curb greenhouse gases. kerry is on his last leg of an asia tour. millionaire club is turning to a centuries old technique for saving money, space, and those who are down on their luck. tanya moseley is looking at the new hydrouponnic farm. >> when the founder of the millionaire club founded a name. >> they wanted to. >> a good meal and a job leader, too. at least that's what happens on

the first floor of the millionaire club. head down four flights of stairs past the boxes of canned goods, you'll find a full fledge farm together with a farmer. >> we're growing lettuce. >> science experiment is a technique thousands of years old, with a modern touch. hydrouponic gardening, growing food in water, enrichard with minerals. led lights stand for the sun. there is no pesticides because there are no bugs. >> you could put your baby in it and your baby would be better for it. >> it takes four weeks to turn into a full head of lettuce, about half the time of a tradition garden. this 250 square foot garden cost about $30,000 to build. it will take the millionaire

charity about a year to pay off. doing away with buying or the cost of shipping in food -- >> we're looking at about threfned300, $$400 a week profi. they're going out on the job site with a full stomach, with a meal, nice breakfast and so they're not working hungry. >> it's a goal, miller says, is very much in line with the mission. only the best for the members of this millionaires club. tanya moseley, al jazeera, seattle. >> two people were killed in a large avalanche in central colorado yesterday, two bodies found today. authorities say a group of skiers trigger erd the slide, two -- survivors struggled to

make it to safety. >> the with ones that were jished did not come down -- injured did not come down quickly. they were slow in their descent. crawling down. it's so sad, always sad when something happens that you hope could be avoided. >> loss of life is not easy. it is hard when people are close to you and the community here will really rally behind the family. gls yes, it's very. >> yes, it's very sad, the people of twin lakes are very sad. >> six peep have died from avalanche in colorado so far this year. major snow storm that hit the northeast, 10 to 15 inches pounded parts of the cape. more than 20,000 people lost power due to heavy winds and fallen tree limbs. about 5,000 are still waiting for electricity to come on

tonight. rebecca, we don't want to hear, more snow is coming. >> at least it's not as much as the last storm, that was a lulu. a lot of flow, and winds, boston and maine, those winds were blowing 50 miles an hour in some spots, there were blizzard warnings. but now that storm is exiting east. we still had a few snow storms exiting behind it but we have a series of storms in effect. as you see the central midwest you can see the next storm developing. by the time tomorrow, i it wille over the great lakes and just a couple of inches. our ice are-z our eyes are on the west. historic avalanche cycle going

on for parts of colorado. the pacific northwest significant amount of snow coming in and this is a very wet, heavy snow and what's happening is, it's coming down and it's a big slab of that wet, heavy snow on top of much lighter snow so it slides very easily. it is dangerous to be out in the back country. all in all those tried and true spots are still dangerous to be in. our avalanche warnings are stretching into the north oregon cascades, montana, colorado and parts of utah as well. keep in mind that country very dangerous through tomorrow. we'll continue with our winter weather advisories, starting to pile up. three feet of new snow after the storms this weekend. wind gusts 30 miles an hour for portland, about that strong for seattle as well. wind gusts have been 50 to 60 miles an hour.

high wind warning in place here. and will stay impacting us through this next storm and also stretching over into the mountains where all that snow is, winds trigger those avalanche slabz. so our forecast through the morning will stay stormy in the east and west. >> yg story we first brought you last month. first time in five decades cuban students are attending college in the united states. learning lessons far beyond the classroom. christina puig send up this update. >> i'm very impressed because we have internet and it isn't restricted. students in my country don't have internet. >> reporter: donelo maldonado is reflecting on his education

in the united states. belong to a group of 17 cuban students who arrived at miami dade university. since the castro regime eased its travel restrictions for cube answer on the island. molino and maldonado, danelo is an artist who wants to study advertising. his paintings which often lampooned cuban politics, were backed. >> i'm here to be a sponge. my purpose for being here is to absorb the necessary knowledge from the curriculum and extracurricular activities. >> the students started out with full immersion english courses

before taking on other core subjects. >> how is your english? >> my english is bad but now it's good. >> human rights in cuba in connection with miami-dade college. much of their expenses such as tuition, room and board are being paid for by a cuban organization here in miami. >> not this beautiful fraternal compile of solidarity. but they hear about the compile that forgot about cuba. >> the cuban compile opens their arms. they ask me how i'm doing in school. they feel like family. >> when not attending class the students are allowed to take in the sights of the city. christina puig, al jazeera,

miami. ending the war on drugs, he joins a long list of public figures who say the anti-drug campaign only hurts poor minority community. russell simmons. >> your perspective sort of drug laws and his death -- >> that's all i said. if he were alive today would he go to jail or rehab? and i say end the war on drugs. the war on drugs has done more to destroy the fabric of the black community than anything we can think of. not the effects of jim crow and the effects of slavery, it's the war on drugs have taken innocent, diseased people, locked them up, educated them in criminal behavior and dumped them back in the hood with no hope. that became jail culture, for the hood, not for the schools. not for the prison. i mean prison has it.

you learn and you're educated in things you never would have done just by -- and whites and blacks don't they use and sell drugs at the same rate? when we were ending those laws 94% of the people black or brown, incarcerated under the rockefeller laws, incarcerate more people in the world, america responsible for locking its own up and creating criminals and a cycle of criminality comes in our communities because of this process. >> you can see that entire interview in just over an hour on al jazeera america. soledad o'brien's interview. still ahead. our week ahead segment we examine if those lessons can be

applied to syria today. a couple's trip ends in tragedy when they crash into a cruise ship.

>> and welcome back to al jazeera america. here is a look at your top stories this half hour. decades of torture in north korea as part of a scathing united nations report due out tomorrow. accusing the ruling kim family of three generations of abuse. some crimes like executions, rape, forced abortions and enslavement. at least four are dead following a bombing of a tourivittouristbus in egypt. the bus was carrying south

korean tourists,. protesters call for the resignation of nicolas maduro in venezuela. frustration is growing among the millions left homeless by the war in syria. peace talks have once again failed. new talks are being scheduled but hope has faded among those suffering in camps. >> translator: geneva was useless. it gave him more time to kill the syrian people and nothing has changed on the ground. our real conference will be fighting the regime by the revolution ris, there is no solution glx we should stop the negotiations with the regime because they will never get anything from the regime. superpowers couldn't get

anything from the regime. how can the weak delegation get anything from the regime? >> so frustrating, the united nations mediator apologized to the syrian people. our stephanie decker is across the border to show the conditions the refugees face in lebanon. >> it's a very difficult situation here. people are very angry. people are saying they are being kicked out of their tents, they have nowhere to sleep, also the army isn't allowing them to leave the area. it is incredibly difficult. i want to bring in a man who has been here for a few days mr. khalid, so he can explain to you how difficult it is like. could you explain what it is like for you here? >> you see and all the world see, our situation here. in this camp. it's still new. the tents, without covers.

people are sleeping on the earth, under the rain. no more food. you had -- you have one -- one time for the food. the situation here is too sad for our people. please, if you can, if the world can, help us. we are human. you see. we are not animals. if no more way to help, treat us, send us your animals. my word for the european union especially. you see so many families stay under the sky. or the earth.

you see the kids, the children. i think this area too cool. we need for more decent. where is the decent? >> what do you say for the people who speak for the syrian people who sit in geneva who can't even figure out how to speak to each other? >> those people are not feeling with us. those people staying at hotels. and getting a big salary. and we stay here without food, without diesel, without water. without from the people in the

world. please help us. we need our country. we need our house. houses. we are not happy, but no other way to do. are. >> mr. halid thank you very much for that. that's a very direct message. >> other people other people thank you. >> send a direct message from exactly the mouths of people who are living as they describe a hell, nothing gets done. it gets incredibly cold at night. many people don't have a place to stay, no roof over their head, they are desperate they want something to be done and they don't know when they can go back home. >> so far more than 9 million people have been disposed from their homes. it is the week ahead, peace to syria today. we have some background from al

jazeera's courtney keeley. >> in the united nations save haven of srebrenica. it was the worst mack kerr the world had seen since 1972. but weeks later with bosnian bon serbs. it led to a cease fire and the dayton peace accords. fast forward to 2014. some experts like david phillips are saying western powers missed the srebrenica moment when world powers realized they could no longer stand on the sidelines. >> the moment to intervene in syria was a year and a half ago when the carnage started. the absence of international

intervention has created a today. and that gap has been filled with extremists and jihadis from around the world. >> he says nato could have taken other measures. >> what it takes is vision and leadership. we haven't seen a lot of that coming from western capitols. meantime people are being slaughtered in large numbers. >> reporter: no government structure to take the place of bashar al-assad's regime. >> this needs to be addressed much more seriously than it has been. >> christopher hill now retired heads the university of denver school of international studies. hill believes lfn lessons from e balkans can be learned. creating a different government that is acceptable to syria's

sectarian groups. >> identifying what is syria going to look like in the future politically? will it have a bicameral parliament, will it have a prime minister or a ceremonial president, strong president, there are a lot of questions and i think until those are answered it's hard to foresee a real effort by a country like the u.s. to be in any way mill trailer involved. >> but -- militarily involved. >> but that's not happening. assad wants the united nations to rid his country of what he calls terrorists. court nid keeley, al jazeera. >> last year i publish a piece in foreign policy, calling

international community to act in syria but since then the situation in syria has moved are in another direction. i think the best way is really through dialogue, through peace conferences to find a solution to address the situation within syria and i think what united states and owner other european allies and ar arabic islamic sts is the right way. i think geneva conference or other conference should be the best frame how to really address the civil war in syria. this is how i see in 2014. while last year i was very much in favor of seeing action by the

u.n. community but situation is the same. >> explain to us what's on your mind, since you were critical to assad, you said he was a madman, a horrible person in your words that needed to be stopped. so what has changed in your mind to not justify further intervention? >> i think one of the best way is by dialogue, through mediation and through the support of the key state actors, to find a solution now. i.t. seems to me that d -- it seems to me that this is the only way how to approach syria in 2014. >> so do you believe the war in the balkans in the '90s would have ended in dialogue and discussion and negotiations? >> no, the only means that

milosevic would have understood at that time was for international intervention and what international community did to him in most any case of kosovo, it was the right thing to be done. and this happened, of course, after different conferences which were failing to address the issue of -- to address the issue in case of -- in case of kosovo. you know that to nato, international intervention, it came after the failing of the peace talks in the ramboulle in paris. that was the only option in kosovo. i think in syria it has to do with another geography, another context and it seems to me that the situation has did hevoluted

in the before two years. >> that was kosovo's foreign minister. >> i asked them about the similarities between the balkans war and the conflict in syria and the emphasis on humanitarian aid. >> if we only focus our energies of trying to eliminate humanitarian concern which is very important, the root cause of that conflict, i see that as a root problem between bo bosnia and syria now. >> what about the differences between the two countries? >> there are important differences. if you look at the broad gee epolitical level, i don't think the u.s. and the relationship as

ambassador measure fizz was saying, the relationship between the u.s. and russia is clearly not the same as it was. russia's foreign,. >> the capacity of the u.s. and its western u.s. allies to generate a broad coalition is diminished if we compare it to the 1990s. >> what needs to happen mr. ambassador to get russia on board with the united states? >> i started a little time ago thinking we could shame the russians by the positions they have taken. which is so against what we would consider normal humanitarian support, now they've rejected saying that that approach and all the talk the transitional government is just another way of helping the terrorists, it's prolonging the whole affair. you got to remember the way they

treated the chechnyans, the russians and the syrians as to how you handle your opposition. you crush it, you liquidate it. >> that's the approach in syria. >> they've used scud missiles and barrel bombs and the whole range of weaponry. >> the u.n. secretary-general when he, series consequences it may have if the international community cannot speak with one voice or cannot reach an agreement on how to address the security challenges. that's exactly what you've hit on, you briefly mentioned iran, mr. ambassador, of the importance of getting iran

involved here, since they've been pushed aside. you've mention ed the russians but what about the iranians? >> our focus was the nuclear weapons issue and not let the other issues intrude. i think we and the iranians are able to handle more than one request topic at a time and consider them possibly cooperative manner, in the syrian relationship, the hezbollah relationships, they responded in the runup to iraq and the runup into the invasion of afghanistan. but the mood in washington is dead set against it. >> i'm wondering if frankly we have missed the movement for any kind of intervention in syria? >> you can always place yourself at any specific point in

conflict and ask yourself that question. >> do you think the moment has passed? >> i don't think the moment has passed, nicholas burns wrote in the are new york times that he didn't think we had reached the srebrenica moment. >> that was the massacre of of. >> srebrenica was a u.n. safe area. that event of july 1995 really shamed the international community. i think what is really important to look at, when we compare bosnia to syria, we are dealing with two different countries in terms of territory. the neighborhood is very different. you can hardly compare the position of crow croatia, and s.

those are elements that are taken into account by people who decide on intervening or not. >> ambassador do you think the bottom line is that we just do not have strong enough leadership now? >> well you've got a leadership who was reelected to help speed up getting us out of afghanistan and iraq. in the '90s our public had not been dragged through such turmoil. and his judgment was that the time hadn't come to involve the united states in another middle east conflict. >> even if it means something as simple as air strikes, not talking necessarily about boots on the ground, even air strikes could make a big difference in syria. why the reluctance to do that? >> that could be a first step but he's also aware how easy it is to start sliding into other

actions, that didn't do it, let's try a protected zone and that will require some ground forces, not ours but somebody's has to go in. that kind of future he has thought of very carefully and doesn't want to get into it. >> not putting forces in there, not having hanging out? >> unless the military situation changes significantly i don't think there will be much movement in geneva. so i think that is something that we have to take into account for sure. >> and that is a sobering thought for the millions of people suffering in syria. thank you both for coming in tonight, we appreciate it. and late tonight the u.s. secretary of state, john kerry, says the united states needs to be part of the syrian are solution. before we wrap up, former

pakistani meuspakistani mattpak. the fight for american skiers in sochi, isn't the hills but of father time. jessica taff next.

>> al jazeera's investigative unit has tonights

exclusive report... >> from coast to coast... >> people selling fresh water for fracking... >> stories that have impact... >> we lost lives... >> that make a difference... >> senator, we were hoping we could ask you some questions about your legal problems... >> that open your world... >> it can be very dangerous... >> i hear gunshots... >> the bullet came right there through the widdow... >> it absolutely is a crisis... >> real reporting... >> this...is what we do... >> america tonight, only on al jazeera america. bo >> a woman whose husband died on a cruise ship says the vessel was poorly maintained and she wants answers. the marco po polo.

>> it was quite dreadful. i was sitting next to him and this window just came in, and the sea with it. and i was very -- well, we were all very, very wet. i think a woman was taken to the hospital and my husband was going to go on the helicopter but he died before they could get him on it. >> the victim's widow there blamed the company for not maintaining. the ship insists that's not the case. also thousands of homes in england and wales were hit with severe flooding. some sections have been underwater for weeks. people have resorted to using boats through flooded seats. a pump helped moved water into a niche river. weather has been the -- nearby river.

the weather has been difficult everywhere. >> u.s. men's alpine ski team, 36-year-old bode miller became the oldest alpine skier to win a medal, second most of anyone in the world. andrew wybrecht. afterwards, miller who was overcome by emotions, he was thinking about his late younger brother, chilone, who died after a seizure. >> it was really hard, attached emotion to this, he wanted to

come to these games. i thought, he would have a chance of making it and for him to pass away the way he did, it sort of connected with my journey coming back and today i felt like that was all very connected and raw and emotion for me. and i just in the finish it just all kind of came out. >> miller and wh whybrecht, held put that together. they beat host team russia in an overtime shootout thriller. this time it was phil kessel's team. the toronto maple leafs star, scoring a hat-trick in hockey tournament.

24 hours after that emotional win over russia. >> i think the most important thing we were focusing on today was that last night's win would have been for nothing had we let this one slip away. so there wasn't as much pressure obviously, but you know we had ooh goal to win this group. and -- had a goal to win this group. and it was attainable at the beginning of the game and we were able to accomplish it. >> u.s. halfway through the two man bobsled race, and near what they haven't been able to do since 1952. host team russia is your leader after the first two runs. and other events to look forward to on day 10. slope snowboard final, and team u.s.a. taking on sweden while canada faces off against

switzerland. ice dance finals, new orleans best on the hard court, one of the things about all-star game, 89 first half points, blake griffin, once you step in front of him then lebron james throwing down, he had his fair share before the rim. combined for all-star record, slam dunk champions, he john wall, the east goes on to win it and it's a game that actually doesn't matter but they won. >> you should not slam the ice dance finals. >> i wasn't. i said if that's not your thing, you should be watching the ice dancing. >> that's our show. headlines after the break.

>> welcome to al jazeera america. i'm jonathan betz with tonight's headlines. disturbing evidence north korea has committed crimes against

humanity. a new united nations report due to be released in just a couple of hours, enslavement, abortion. >> secretary of state john kerry, says it's clear, rather than negotiating in good faith. demonstrators agreed to leave if the government promised to drop charges against arrested activists. the prosecutor general says they will begin to release those activists on monday. in south africa, 11 miners have been rescued from a collapsed mine. and turned over to police.

leopoldo lopez has not been seen in days, lopez says he has done nothing wrong, people have been rallying for days, condemning foot shortages and rising crime. up next, al jazeera presents. >> emergency nurse maria connolly is leaving her job at the royal hospital, preston, to work in ciudad juarez, mexico. she'll find a city engulfed in a brutal gang war. >> do we know if it's a gun or a knife? >> where doctors and nurses are